Before All This Happened
by SweeneyintheNight
Summary: We all remember Scarecrow as the creepy phsychayatrist that went crazy and gassed all of Gotham. But what happened before all this? What made Jonathan Craine go crazy? The answer? Follow John as he finds out who he really is. Scarecrow.
1. First Day of High School

"I can't believe that my baby boy's going to high school!" Debbie smiled at her young son and pushed her long, red hair back. She stared at him with wonder, his shoulder-length dark brown hair, his gleaming light blue eyes, but those glasses that they were hiding behind. On him, it looked like he was hiding a secret, as if he were hiding behind them pretending to be someone he's not. He was fairly short for his age, but so was she, in fact, the height was the only trait that he and his mother shared. She was fairly short, but, she had bright red hair, very dark green eyes, and didn't have to wear glasses.

Her son looked like a real high school boy, with the black T-shirt that said "For a second I actually thought you said something interesting" and worn out jeans. "I'm going to be all right Mom," John replied, smiling at Debbie.

"I know you are," Debbie replied, "but it seems like yesterday when you were running around in that red cape announcing that you were Captain . . . "

"Mom . . . "

"Sorry sweetie. But it seems like you were just a little kid a week ago."

"I know Mom. But, I'm a grown kid, I need to make it on my own. I'm gonna be okay."

"Sorry I worry so much. It's just that . . . "

"Mom, what's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Then why are you crying?"

"Oh, I'm just happy for you that's all." John smiled at his mom and hugged her. Debbie smiled and parted from her son. "You'll be late for your first day of high school," she said.

John smiled at his mom and said, "I don't want that to happen." He quickly grabbed his backpack from the table and raced for the door. "Bye Mom!" John announced.

"Bye Johnny!" Debbie yelled. As the door shut, Debbie went to go sit at the coffee table. As she sipped her coffee, she thought about her son trying to live in Gotham. Then, she thought of how brave he was, just like his father. His father . . . she cried softly during the thought of his father.

John walked to his school, skipping and humming "Zippity Do Da". He smiled as he looked up to his school. "High school here I come," John said to himself, thinking happy thoughts about high school. But when he entered the school building, happiness was the farthest thing from his mind.

Everything seemed so...different. Everyone looked tougher and stronger than in Chicago, and Chicago was a tough city for John. He saw a Gothic couple passing by him holding hands. He saw a jock push two freshman nerds to the dirty floor. He even heard someone threaten to shoot someone! One thing was clear to John . . . this was not Chicago.

Suddenly, he was pushed down to the cold, dirty tile floor. "Sorry dude!" John heard someone say. He quickly grabbed onto somebody's hand and got up. "Sorry about that," the boy who pushed John down said.

"It's okay," John replied. There was something about that boy. He had fairly short light brown hair with blonde highlights, dazzling dark brown eyes, and a red T-shirt that said "Just Say No" and a pair of jeans that looked like he just bought at the mall about five minutes ago. There was something about him, it made him look like he was twenty, not fourteen. Maybe because of his height, his face, his mature attitude, John couldn't point it out.

The boy held out his hand to John. "I'm Dylan Anne."

"Jonathan Craine," John said, shaking Dylan's hand.

"You're new here, aren't you?"

"Yeah. How did you know?"

"You had the new kid look. And, also, you had the look of surprise of how much goes on in this school."

"Yeah. It does freak me out."

"I know. But, hey, Gotham's that way. So, where did you move here from?"

"Chicago."

"Ah, Chicago. Very nice place."

"Do you think I'll be able to make Gotham?"

"It may take some time, but I bet you can make it."

"Thanks." John and Dylan talked for quite a while, walking to their locker. Dylan was talking about how he thought high school would be when, all of a sudden, John was trying to open his locker, but after about a minute of failure, started to kick it.

"Trouble opening your locker?" Dylan asked.

"Could you help me get this (grr) stupid thing to open!" Dylan smiled and turned the dial of the combination. He kept on turning the dial until it finally opened. John stared at Dylan in surprise. "You had the combination wrong," Dylan said. "It's eight at the end, not seven."

"How do you know?" John asked.

"Well, it is my locker, locker buddy." Dylan smiled and pushed his backpack into the locker.

John and Dylan sat next to each other in the actually clean lunch room. Dylan stared at this weird thing, it looked like gray goo, at his lunch tray. "So, why did you move from Chicago to Gotham?" Dylan asked John.

"My mom got a great job offering here," John said, sticking his fork in the goo.

"What does she do?"

"She's a journalist."

"Really? There's a lot of stuff to write about in Gotham. What about your dad?" John looked up at Dylan. "He was a cop," John replied.

"Is he unemployed now?"

"You could say that." Dylan all of a sudden waved his hand high. A girl sat down across from the two. "John," Dylan said, "this is my twin sister, Jenny. Jenny, this is my friend, John." Jenny smiled and shook John's hand. Oh, she was so beautiful. Her long, light brown hair, her dazzling dark brown eyes, and that smile, her smile was so beautiful.

"Nice to meet you, John," Jenny said.

"Nice to meet you too," John replied.

"When Dylan said I'm his twin sister, he meant his older twin sister."

"Yeah," Dylan replied, "by four minutes!"

"And that's four minutes more mature than you." John looked down at his plate, slowly dipped his fork into the gray goo, and tried to put it up to his mouth. Suddenly, Jenny's hand reached out to John's hand and slowly put his hand down back to his tray. "You don't want to eat that," she said.

"Why not?" John asked. "The school food in Chicago was great!"

"But this isn't Chicago," Dylan said. "One bite of that and you'll have to go straight to the hospital." John shrugged and put the fork with goo back into his mouth. Automatically, he gagged and coughed until finally he grabbed his soda and gulped it down.

"Well?" Dylan asked.

"I think I'd rather fall off a cliff than eat this cooking," John said, still gagging a little big. Jenny smiled at John. "Don't worry," she said, "the stinging will wear off in a few minutes."

"What sting-AHHH! The stinging just came!"

Debbie sat at the coffee table staring at the legal pad in front of her. What to write . . . suddenly, she heard the door open and close. "Mom!" Debbie heard John announce. "I'm home!"

"I'm in the kitchen!" Debbie called back. She saw her son come into the kitchen and smile at her.

"How was school?" Debbie asked.

"It was awesome!" John replied. "I even made a couple of friends."

"Oh. Who are they?"

"Their names are Dylan and Jenny Anne. They're great. Everything was great! Except for the school lunch. THAT was disgusting!"

"Well, I'm certainly glad you had a good day."

"Me too. Hey, I'm going to change out of my clothes, okay?"

"Okay." John went upstairs to his room. As he closed the door behind him, he saw a picture of his father and John as a five-year-old on his back. "Hi Dad," John said to the picture. He picked it up, put it face down on the counter, and had tears dripping down his face.


	2. The Beggar

John stared at the muddy puddle of water on the concrete. It had rained the night before and all it left was mucky water all over the place. It was Saturday. No school. No homework to do for the night, for he always finished it on Friday night. Just a weekend to relax.

For John, that meant reading all day long. It had been a month since John first started high school in Gotham, but he still felt like he was walking in for the first time whenever he walked through the door. John had to make himself realize something. This is Gotham, not Chicago. John turned around and walked up the street.

This was usually how John calmed himself down, by taking a quiet walk by himself. It had been really stressful for him, the past few months. Heck, it was tough for him for the past few years! He had to leave all his friends in Chicago, his mom had to get various jobs, and his dad...

As John approached his house, he saw Jenny and Dylan at his front door. John was wondering why they were at his house. Then he realized, they were his good friends. He had friends in Chicago, but his friends never showed up to his house on the weekends. Whenever John DID invite them over, they had another excuse, wether it was their cat dying or spending time with their parents. John cried at the though that someone even cared about him.

"John?" he heard Jenny ask. "John, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," John replied. "My allergies are just acting up, that's all." Suddenly, John felt an arm around his shoulder. He looked up to see that Dylan had put his arm around his shoulder. "Are you okay?" he asked John.

"I'm fine," John sniffled, fighting back the tears.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. It's just my allergies. They are really acting up." John wiped his eyes and sniffled. He looked up and smiled at Dylan. "Dylan and I are going to see a movie," Jenny said, smiling at John. "We were wondering if you would like to come."

"Yeah," John replied. "I would like to come." He smiled at Jenny and put his arm around his two friends. Dylan kept his arm around John and Jenny put her arm around John. The three friends walked away.

"That was an awesome movie!" Dylan announced. The movie just ended, John and Dylan were racing out of the movie theater while Jenny was walking behind.

"I never knew that The Matrix would be so cool!" John replied. "It was so...so...REAL!"

"Boys," Jenny sighed.

"Hey!" Dylan exclaimed to his sister. "Don't you remember that I was born with super sonic ears. I can hear a cat meowing from ten miles away!"

"You can hear everything except for when Mom tells you to do your homework."

"My mother is my only weakness and you know it!" John started to laugh. Dylan grabbed John's head under his arm and shook John's hair with his fist. "Stop!" John laughed out.

"Dylan!" Jenny exclaimed. "You're going to make him go into a coma if you do it that hard!"

"Fine, fine." Dylan let go of John, who fell hard to the ground. John grabbed Dylan's legs and wrestled him to the ground. Jenny laughed at the hard yet friendly fight. John tackled onto Dylan and started to tickle him. People stopped on the street and stared at the two teenage boys.

"Okay, okay," Dylan managed to laugh out. "I give! I give!" John smiled and jumped off. He held out his hand and helped his friend up. They looked at the on-goers. "It's okay," Jenny said. "They're typical teenage guys, not homosexuals."

Everyone nodded their heads and kept on walking. John and Dylan looked at Jenny. "Of course," Jenny said, "sometimes I feel that you are a homosexual, Dylan." Jenny and John started to laugh. "I should be running now, shouldn't I?" Jenny asked.

"Yep," Dylan said. Suddenly, Jenny started running, with Dylan following her, and John following Dylan. Dylan grabbed Jenny, but John tackled the two to the ground. They were rolling around laughing. As the three got up, someone was running towards them.

At first, John thought it was someone who was running from the police. But the man had a ragged beard, long, tangled hair, and was wearing rags. The man got on his knees when he got to John and grabbed his clothes.

"Mister," the man said, "I need money. Badly. Please." The smell of stale beer was surrounding the man. John knew that if he gave him any money, it would just be wasted on alcohol. "Sorry sir," John replied, "I don't have any money."

"Two quarters," the man said, as if he didn't hear John. "That's all I need. Two quarters."

"He said he doesn't have any money," Dylan said. "So go."

"Please sir," the man kept on. "All I need is two quarters."

"I am really sorry," John replied. "I don't have any money. Even if I did, I wouldn't give it to you because you would waste it all on alcohol instead of something important like food. So stop wasting your time trying to get money from me." The man slowly let go of John. John walked around the man and walked on up the street. Dylan and Jenny followed, ignoring the man.

"John!" Dylan called. John stopped and turned around. Dylan ran up and placed his hand on John's shoulder. "That was very brave," Dylan said. "If you want to survive in Gotham, you have two choices to do whenever you're in that situation. You would either give the money to him or not."

"You would have given him the money if you didn't smell alcohol on him," Jenny kept on, "but you did. So you didn't give him the money. But if you didn't smell alcohol, would you still give him the money?" John nodded his head.

"It's men like those my father had to deal with," John said.

"Where is your father?" Dylan asked. "We've always seen your mother, but never your father."

"Yeah," Jenny said. "What did happen to your father?" John turned around. He walked up the sidewalk and stopped. John didn't turn around. "He's dead," John replied. John ran home, with his two best friends running after him.


	3. The Football Game

John was jumping up and down when the cold breeze blew through his dark brown hair. It was a high school football game and Dylan just so happened to be on the football team. John and Jenny were hoping like mad. It was in the middle of winter.

"Why do they decide to have these football games in the middle of winter?" Jenny asked, facing the field.

"I don't know," John said. "I guess to keep the football players ready for anything."

"Yeah, I guess. Brr! It's freezing out here!"

"Do you want to sit down?"

"Why not?" John and Jenny sat on the cold, metal bleachers. The bleachers made the two friends even colder. "Do you have a blanket?" Jenny asked.

"Yeah," John said. He grabbed his knapsack and threw the blanket around him and Jenny. The blanket wasn't big, so they had to get really close. When their shoulder's touched, they looked at each other. "You okay?" Jenny asked.

"Yeah," John said. "I'm fine. I've never gotten this close to a girl before."

"Well, we're just friends," Jenny laughed. "Aren't we?"

"Yeah," John replied. "Just...friends." Jenny looked at John with a concerned look on her face.

"Are you okay?" she asked him.

"Yeah," John replied. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"The homeless man who begged for money."

"Jenny, that was two weeks ago."

"I know. It's just that, well, when I first got a homeless guy begging me for money, it was bothering me for a month!" Jenny paused and turned to her friend. "How did he die"

"Who?" John asked. John knew who Jenny was talking about, but he didn't want to catch on about his father.

"Your father. I know you might not want to talk about him, but, John..." At this point, Jenny placed her hand on his shoulder. "You're my best friend." John felt tears welling up in his eyes, but he didn't want to let them out. He knew that he cried in front of his friends before, but he blamed it on allergies. This time, his friend would catch on that it wasn't "allergies".

John didn't reply to Jenny. She squeezed his shoulder. "I know you don't want to talk about him," she kept on, "I don't blame you. You don't have to reply. But, I just want to let you know, my mom might die soon."

John turned and looked at Jenny. "What?" he asked surprised.

"John," Jenny said, tears welling up in her eyes, "my mom's diagnosed with breast cancer." John kept on staring at Jenny. Then, he saw something he never thought he would see from his best friend. She cried. John quickly wrapped his arms around Jenny and squeezed her.

As he cradled her, she threw her arms around his neck and cried on his shoulder. The wet tears were flowing John's shoulder. He cried with her. Why did John care so much about Jenny and Dylan's mom being diagnosed with lung cancer. In Chicago, a friend told him that his parents died in a car crash, and John didn't shed one tear. Not one tear. So why did he care so much about their mom?

Because they were his best friends. His friends in Chicago never did the things that Jenny and Dylan did for him. Jenny and Dylan were his best friends. And he was their's. As the two parted from the emotional hug, John put his arm around Jenny and wrapped the blanket around them once more.

"My dad was on patrol," John started. "They had a crime on Woodland Street, so he had to go check it out. There was a robbery at the gas station. A homeless guy was sticking up a robbery so he could get more money, for drinking, I guess. The man went crazy, he shot at my dad and his partner. My dad's partner was okay; he only got shot in the leg. But my dad got shot in the heart. My mom said that a beautiful angel came down and took my dad up to heaven, before he could feel any pain."

John turned to his best friend. "I hope that you don't loose your mom," he said. Jenny smiled and rested her head on John's shoulder. Half time was over. The football game had started again, for the third inning.

John walked into his house and threw his knapsack on the kitchen table. "I'm home!" he shouted.

"I'm feeding the dog!" John pulled a chair out from under the kitchen table and sat down. His mom came into the kitchen with her bathrobe on. "How was the game?" she asked.

"It was okay," John replied. "We lost by fourteen points."

"Oh well," Debbie said. "Better luck next time, huh?"

"Yeah," John replied. "I guess."

"Is something wrong?"

"No. I'm just really tired. I'm going to bed."

"Okay John. If there's anything wrong, you just tell me, okay sweetie?"

"Okay Mommy." John paused and looked at Debbie. He hadn't called her Mommy since he was ten-years-old. John stood up and started to exit the kitchen. "Night Mom!" he called.

"Night Sweetie! I love you!"

"I love you too!" When John entered his room, he threw his shirt off onto the floor, collapsed on the bed, and cried himself to sleep.

On Monday, John, Jenny, and Dylan looked up at the TV in the hallway, waiting for the hourly school news. Lizzie Campbell was on the screen, announcing the nominees for prom king and queen. "The nominees for prom queen are Olivia Underwood, Sarah Billings, and Jennifer Ann." Jenny jumped up and down and hugged Dylan and John excitedly.

"The nominees for prom king are Brad Connors, Dylan Ann, and Johnothan Crane." Dylan and John jumped up and cheered. John hugged Jenny and Dylan. John knew what would happen if both he and Jenny won. They would have to do what he had always wanted to do. They would have to dance with each other.


	4. Bruce Wayne

John stared out the window as the rain poured down. He knew he should have been listening to the lesson, but he couldn't concentrate. Besides, he's known about the history of Julius Caesar's reign since he was in the sixth grade! John couldn't concentrate. His mind was running with his emotions.

_I still can't believe I got nominated for prom king, _John was telling himself. _Why would I be? I'm not that popular. At my old school, I was basically a geek! Stop that, John! Stop telling yourself that this school is like the one in Chicago, okay? It's not. Gotham and Chicago are two totally different cities. Two different worlds, for that matter! Besides, if I do become prom king, all the girls would want to go out with me, all the boys would want to hang out with me, I would become Mr. Popular!_

_But what would happen if all of a sudden I didn't have enough time for Dylan and Jenny. Would they be my friends anymore? Or would the just think that I'm too popular for them. Would I miss my friends? Would they even be my friends? And what about Jenny? Would she like me more or less or just still remain the same? You know that you love Jenny, John. But does she love you? Or are you too much of a geek for her?_

_Stop it! Stop it right now! You're an attractive boy, you're smart, you're funny, any girl would want to go out with you! Jenny would probably say yes if you ask her to go on a date, to get married, for that matter! _Then an awful thought bounced into John's head. _If we do get married, would her mom still be alive to come to the wedding?_

"Mr. Crane!" John jumped up and faced his attention to Mr. Togo. The history teacher was a fairly young man, about in his late twenties, very tall, about six foot seven, blond hair that was light enough to look like a halo, green eyes that seemed to sparkle whenever he was happy, but had on glasses, much like John's, to hide behind. "Yes, Mr. Togo?" John asked the teacher.

"What did the fortune teller tell Julius Caesar to beware?"

"The Ides of March."

"Thank you, Mr. Crane. At least SOMEBODY was paying attention to my class!"

"Oh yeah?" Eugene Harolds blurted out. Eugene was your typical school snobby geek. He wore big, baggy pants with his buttoned up shirt tucked with, of course, suspenders and hid behind huge glasses that Dylan made a joke that he could fill a whole chair with them. "If he was paying attention, than why was he looking out the window with a look like he was daydreaming?"

"Uh…" John didn't know how to answer Eugene's question. "Well…uh…I…"

"Shut up, Eugene!" John turned his head to see Bruce Wayne, the most popular kid in school, turning his head to face Eugene. "Just because he was staring out the window doesn't mean he wasn't paying attention!"

"But he…"

"You're always trying to outsmart someone," Bruce cut off Eugene. "Always trying to make someone feel as if you know more than them. Well, you know what, Eugene? John and I may not be geniuses, but you're no genius either. You're just a regular kid trying to feel that he needs more excitement to his life. You feel that you're not important enough, so you show off to everybody about how smart and organized you are! Well, wanna know something, Einstein? Nobody likes a show off!"

"Mr. Wayne…" Mr. Togo was cut off by Eugene's obnoxious voice.

"I do not!" Eugene exclaimed. "I didn't even say anything how I was paying attention to the class and John here was staring off into space, probably thinking about some girl in this school!"

"You just did, genius!" Bruce exclaimed. "Don't you know when to stop, Harolds?"

"Mr. Wayne!" Mr. Togo exclaimed. The two teenagers quit their argument and faced their attention to the teacher. "If you would like to start a fight with Mr. Harolds, that's fine. And if you want to be sent to detention after the fight, along with Mr. Harolds, that's fine too!"

"Hey!" John yelled to the teacher. "You're sending someone to detention just because he was standing up for me? Mr. Togo, with all due respect, Eugene should be sent to detention for being a snob and I should be sent for not paying attention during class?"

"So you weren't paying attention?"

"Of course not! I've known this crap about Julius Caesar since the sixth grade!" At this point, the whole class was rolling on the floor laughing. John was just relieved that Dylan wasn't in the class. It would have been worse if Jenny was in the class. Bruce turned his head and smiled at John. John smiled back.

"Well, I'm glad that this discussion was made during the last five minutes of this class," Mr. Togo announced. "Class…is dismissed." At this point John shot up, grabbed his books, and stormed right out of the classroom. John kept on walking until he reached his and Dylan's locker. Where was Dylan? He wasn't anywhere in sight.

"I'm gonna die of embarrassment," John muttered under his breath. Suddenly, before he could reach his hand out to his locker, he felt a hand on his shoulder. John jumped around to see Bruce with a big grin on his face. "Thanks for standing up to Mr. Togo," he told John.

"Thanks for standing up to Eugene," John replied.

"Somebody had to."

"I know. First month in this school and he's already on the very top of my list."

"Am I on the list?"

"No."

"Then I'm good."

"Yeah."

"Hey, uh, I've noticed that you're very good at history. You see, I'm, uh, not really doing so good in it, and I was wondering, maybe you could tutor me in it."

"Uh, well, I'll have to check my schedule. You see, my best friends and I are always going out, and when they're not, I'm out with my mom. But I think I can squeeze you in."

"Thanks, Dr. Crane." They both laughed. Bruce said a quick goodbye to John and ran towards his locker. John opened his locker when he heard Dylan say, "So, I'm taking it you met Bruce Wayne."


	5. Prom Night

John stared at how the gymnasium was neatly decorated, like it never was a gym before. A disco ball lit up the dance floor, along with a series of strobe lights, but John was even more amazed by how beautiful Jenny looked. She wore her light brown hair up in a bun, with real flowers sprouting out of it, she wore a green dress that seemed to sparkle whenever she showed her beautiful smile, and beautiful green high heels to go with the dress.

_I can't believe it,_ John thought to himself. _I never thought that I could go to the prom with such a beautiful girl. John, it's just a date to the prom. Most of the time, nothing happens. But Dad took Mom as a date to the prom. That's probably not gonna happen with you and Jenny, though. John, stop thinking and have fun tonight!_

John turned to Jenny and smiled at her. She smiled back. John thought to himself, _Tonight, you're never gonna be happier._ And he was right.

"Will all of the prom king and queen nominees please step to the stage." the high school principle stepped to the lifted wooden stage, along with John, Dylan, Jenny, and all the other nominees for prom king and queen. John looked over at Jenny, leaned over to her, and whispered, "Congratulations."

Jenny looked over at him, with a look of confusion on her face and whispered, "What are you talking about? They didn't even announce the prom king and queen yet."

"Yes, but you look so beautiful tonight, who wouldn't vote for you to be prom queen."

"Well, then, congratulations to you." Jenny quickly kissed John on the cheek and smiled at him. "That was for being so sweet." The two friends smiled at each other and looked out to the audience. _Here it comes, _John said to himself. _Let's see what's gonna happen after tonight._

"And this year's prom king and queen is...," the principle quickly opened the envelope and smiled. "Jennifer Anne and Jonothan Crane!" John and Jenny looked at each other and ran to where the principle placed a plastic tiara on Jenny's head and a plastic crown on John's head. Jenny looked at John, jumped up, and squeezed him.

The couple walked off the stage. Jenny wrapped her arms around John's neck and he wrapped his arms around her waist and the two swung back and forth to the Counting Crew's song.

_Oh, I, I just died in your arms tonight_

_It must have been something you said_

_I just died in your arms tonight_

"What are the odds?" Jenny asked.

"What do you mean?"

"That you said I would be prom queen, I said you would be prom king, and we both won."

"You won because you look so beautiful tonight. I have no idea why I was voted for prom king."

"Maybe because you look so handsome tonight." John smiled and squeezed Jenny closer to him.

_I keep looking for something I can't get  
Broken hearts lie all around me  
And I don't see an easy way to get out of this  
Her diary it sits on the bedside table  
The curtains are closed, the cats in the cradle  
Who would've thought that a boy like me could come to this_

"John," Jenny whispered in his ear, "there's a couple of things I gotta tell you. I don't _  
_how to say this."

"Just say it, Jenny. I swear, whatever you say, good or bad, I will be right here for you. I promise."

"John, my mother is dying."

_  
Oh I, I just died in your arms tonight  
It must've been something you said  
I just died in your arms tonight  
Oh I, I just died in your arms tonight  
It must've been some kind of kiss  
I should've walked away, I shouldve walked away_

"What?"

"My mother. She's gonna die. The doctors say that there's nothing they can do about her cancer. She's gonna die John. I don't know when, but she's gonna die." John clutched her as she cried on his shoulder.

"Shh, Jenny, shhh. It's okay. I'm right here. I'm gonna be here for you. I'm gonna be right here for you. Jenny, everything's gonna be all right." Jenny held onto John and cried. "Jenny, shhh. I'm gonna be right here. Jenny, it's gonna be all right."

"John, I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do."

"You don't have to do anything. Your mother is strong. I'm sure she's gonna live."

"How sure."

"I'm pretty sure."

_Is there any just cause for feeling like this?  
On the surface I'm a name on a list  
I try to be discreet, but then blow it again  
I've lost and found, it's my final mistake  
She's loving by proxy, no give and all take  
'cos I've been thrilled to fantasy one too many times_

"John, the other thing I wanted to tell you..."

"Jenny, it's okay. You don't have to tell me now if you don't want to."

"John, I have to. I have to tell you sooner or later. I don't know how I ever lived without telling you sooner. I knew I would tell you this from the first time I met you."

"Jenny, what is it?"

"John, I love you."

_Oh I, I just died in your arms tonight  
It must've been something you said  
I just died in your arms tonight  
Oh I, I just died in your arms tonight  
It must been some kind of kiss  
I shouldve walked away, I should've walked away_

"What?"

"John, I felt something for you ever since the day I met you. But as I gradually became closer of a friend to you, I knew that I loved you. I have no idea how I went on without telling you, but I love you." John leaned back and kissed the top of Jenny's head.

She looked up at the attractive teenager and smiled as he smiled at her. "Jenny, I love you too. I was fretting all night because I thought that you didn't feel the same for me. Jenny, I've never been so happy in my entire life."

"Neither have I."

_It was a long hot night  
She made it easy, she made it feel right  
But now it's over the moment has gone  
I followed my hands not my head, I knew I was wrong_

"I have been dreaming about this night all of my life."

"So have I." Jenny leaned her head on John's to an angle where their foreheads down to their noses touched. John leaned in and kissed her passionately. She nibbled on his bottom lip, basically asking permission to get in. He opened his mouth and felt her tongue wiggle in, feeling like this moment would ever end. John never wanted this moment to end.

Jenny leaned back to get some oxygen, but leaned back in for some more. John was right at that moment. He had never been happier in his life.

_Oh I, I just died in your arms tonight_


	6. After That Night

John stared out the foggy window pane and sighed miserably. He was still daydreaming about the past prom night, but that was so long ago. So many memories to remember. "How could this happen to me?" John asked himself. "How?"

**Eight years ago...**

His mom, Jenny's parents, and Dylan were excited about them being together! The couple had gone on dates since then, all of them creating a greater and greater layer on top of their relationship.

Everyday, they told each other that they loved each other. Everyday, they told each other that they loved each other. Everyday they kissed each other for a hello and kissed each other for a good-bye, they even kissed each other for the smallest of reasons during their dates. John held Jenny's hand almost every time they could, even around his friends. They would pass notes during class.

They did everything with each other. They even talked about sex with each other, but agreed that it would be something to save themselves until marriage. They knew they were going to marry each other, but they couldn't decide. Right after college, right after high school, they didn't know. Finally, about when both of them graduated from high school and started to go to a small college in Gotham, they started to get more and more close.

When the two graduated from Gotham University, with John having his degree in psychology and Jenny having her degree in education, Jenny became a Kindergarten teacher and John went to medical school. After all his learning was finished, John went off to be a psychologist. Then, about a month after he became a psychologist, he took Jenny on a walk.

"Jenny," he began, "you know that you're the first thing I see when I wake up and the last thing I see when I fall asleep. I've loved you since I saw you the first day I met you. You are the most beautiful thing in the world. So, this is why I ask you this."

John stopped in the middle of the track and turned to Jenny. He kneeled down on one knee and took a small, blue velvet box out of his pants pocket. "Jenny," he said, opening the box to reveal a beautiful gold ring with a diamond sticking out of the middle, "will you marry me?"

Jenny just stared at John. Then, she quickly smiled and nodded her head. "Yes, yes, I will marry you!" After he pulled the ring onto her ring finger, she jumped on top of him, hugging him forever. About a month later, the couple got married, with Dylan as the best man, and the twins' mother alive and well to join the wedding.

The couple got married on a beautiful spring day on a beach and they had never been happier in their lives. That is, not since the prom night six years ago.

The couple had been happily married for three years. But then, John figured out about the League of Shadows by one of his clients. John just went there to check them out, but one thing led to another and he became a member. Not really a member, but just in on the plan to destroy Gotham. But the one thing kept haunting his mind. _Jenny._

"I've got a surprise for you!" John announced one day as he got back from work.

"Hi honey!" Jenny replied.

"Well, I know how much you've missed your family since Dylan and your parents moved to California, so I got you a little gift." Suddenly, John grabbed a little envelope out of his pants pocket. He handed it to Jenny. As she opened it, she jumped up and hugged John, nearly letting the airplane ticket fly in the air.

"John!" she screamed out. "Thank you so much!" As she let go of the hug, he leaned forward and kissed her. She looked down at the ticket and looked back at her husband.

"Are you not going?" Jenny asked.

"I really want to," John said, "but I have an important meeting here that I have to attend to."

"Did you mean to book it on this flight?"

"It was the only time Dylan and your parents had time to see you. And when I found out it was on the same week as my meeting, I really wanted to re-schedule, but I couldn't. You understand, right?"

"Of course I understand. Anyone can replace a Kindergarten teacher for a week or so, but no one can replace a psychologist for a week."

"I wish that they could. Then, I would be going on the vacation with you." Jenny wrapped her arms around John's neck and kissed him passionately. As she kissed her husband, Jenny Crain couldn't help but think this thought. _Something bad's going to happen while I'm gone._ _Something really bad._


	7. Last Words

As John stared out the window of his home, he was remembering their goodbye. John pressed his lips against Jenny's, but it wasn't any good-bye kiss. He kissed her for a long time, kissing her the exact same way he did when they shared their first kiss. As she pulled away, Jenny looked at her long time lover and smiled. "What was that for?" she asked.

"I'm going to miss you," John responded with a smile. "A week's a long time for me."

"It's a long time for me too. But, as soon as I come home, I'll tell you how everything went. And maybe we can conceive our child afterwards." John laughed and kissed his wife good-bye. Little did she know, one thought was going through his mind. _I wouldn't count on it._ John began to cry.

He jumped up when he heard a knock on the door and raced forwards. As he approached the doorway, he was wiping his tears away, hoping that it was Jenny, begging for John to come with her on the plane. But he knew that it wasn't her. As he opened the door, a potato sack that was an excuse for a mask was thrown into his hands.

John looked up and stared at the tall man who seemed that he could never die. Maybe because he was. The man smiled at John and gave out a little chuckle. As the man handed the somewhat member a suitcase, he said, "It's time for your meeting with Rachel Dawes." John put the mask into the suitcase and raced to his car, trying not to have Henri Ducard see his tears.

It had been five years since the attempt to suffocate Gotham's water supply. Five years since he had last seen Jenny. Tears streamed down John's face. He could feel how betrayed everyone would feel. How everyone must hate him. And they had a right to. They had every right to hate John with a passion.

He looked down at the beautiful five-year-old boy that laid in his bed. He had a bush of dark brown hair, stunning blue eyes, and a beautiful face. All just like his father. He even had the same name as his father. Jonathan Crain.

John brushed his hand over the boys cheek. "You may be a little different when you go to school," he said to his asleep son. "You may not know who your father was. You may not learn who he was until you're twenty! You may think your father got your mother pregnant and married her, but ran away afterwards. You may think your father went to jail and was in for life or the death penalty.

"You may even think that I raped your mother! But, the most important thing is that you know that I always cared about your mother and you. I still love your mother. I made her run from Gotham when I was threatening everyone else in here. Son, we all live in a hell hole. Kids may make fun of you because you never knew your father, but you know what? No family is perfect.

"I used to lay awake at nights, thinking that there would always be the perfect family out there, somewhere. But no family is perfect. Like, my family. My dad died when I was young. My mother said a beautiful angel came from heaven and carried him to heaven before he could suffer. I just want you to know, I love you."

Suddenly, the little boy opened his eyes and stared at the man. "You're my daddy, aren't you?"

"Yes, John. I'm your daddy. I just want you to know, I'll always love you." Suddenly, John jumped out the first floor window. The little boy raced to the window to look for his father. "John?" The little boy turned to see his mother in the doorway. "John, it's late. Why are you up?"

"I saw Daddy," the boy announced.

"I'm sure you did. Now get back in bed."

"I really saw him! He has black hair and blue eyes, like mine, and glasses!"

"John..."

"He said that I might not know who he is. He said that he got you out of this city before you could get hurt. He said he wants us to know that he always loved me and you." Jenny stared at her child and clutched him. She began to cry with her little boy.

Bruce clutched his head into his hands. He knew that he would find someone he knew in this super hero career, but he never thought he would find Jonathan Crain. But, yet again, he probably had the same motive as Bruce, except in a different perspective.

Jonathan Crain's father died because of injustice. He just wanted to make sure that wouldn't happen in Gotham. Of course, John thought that everyone in Gotham was evil. That is, everyone, except for Jenny.

Jenny held her little boy's hand when they saw the body on the street. He had a bullet in his head, but from what evidence seemed, looked like he committed suicide. In his right hand, there was a silver pistol. In his left hand, a hand written note. Jenny squeezed her boy's hand, feeling him move closer to her.

Bruce Wayne and Rachel Dawes were staring at the body as well. "I knew his life was screwed up," Bruce said, "but I didn't think he would kill himself."

"His life was down the drain," Rachel commented. "Why live on when there was nothing to live for?"

Jenny approached the body and took the letter from Lieutenant Gordon. Tears ran down from Jenny's eyes after she read the letter. "Come on John," she told her son. "We'll come for the body later."

"I miss Daddy," the little boy told his mother.

"Me too, John. Me too." As she let the letter fall to the ground, Bruce picked the paper up, reading it to himself.

_To whom it may concern,_

_As you can tell, I am Jonathan Crain. The man who was being chased by the police since that faithful night five years ago. After that night, my crew and I ran away. We scattered around the world, splitting up so the cops wouldn't find us. I, of course, went back to my hometown, Chicago. My father was a cop, so he died, trying to help his city be safe. I went to visit him when I returned to Chicago. As I stared at his grave, I realized, I thought I did this to protect the world. But I realized I actually did it because I was scared of the world being hurt. But there is evil in every city, so in order to keep the world of justice in order, we would have to destroy every city. So I went back to Gotham. I went to see my child. And as I saw him, I realized that this doesn't have to be the life for him. So, I have a message for those people out there I would like to have my last words to._

_Bruce Wayne: I know that we weren't exactly the best of friends during school, but you stood up for me when that nerd tried to get me in trouble, I helped you with History, and we hung out sometimes. I know how shocked you may be, this timid kid you knew in high school, become some sort of evil man. So, I am sorry._

_Dylan: We were best friends in high school and we remained best friends for a long time. I was upset when you moved to California, but it was a good thing, because you didn't have to go through the suffering thousands of others had to go through. I never got to say goodbye to you._

_Mom: I know how disappointed you must be, but do you still love me? A mother always loves her child, so I hope you still love me. Mother, I will always love you. I am with Daddy now, so you don't have to worry. The both of us will be watching you._

_Jenny: You are the most important thing to me. I wish that the way I died would be to save you. In a way, it did. But I want you to know, the day you left to see your mother and brother, I knew you would most likely never see each other again. I saw my child last night, I couldn't believe that I left you and that beautiful boy. But I want you to know, I always loved you. I made you leave so you wouldn't get hurt. I love you. I always will. I will be watching over you and little John. I will always love you guys._

_Love,_

_Jonathan Craine_


End file.
